Passengers:Through Time, By French Visual Artist Guillaume Marmin, Debuts Globally in Dubai

Passengers:Through Time

As one of the highlights of The Stellar Odyssey, Jaeger-celebration LeCoultre's of the relationship between astronomical phenomena and watchmaking, the Swiss Maison presents the new art installation Passengers: Through Time, commissioned from the French visual artist Guillaume Marmin as part of its Made of Makers programme.

Following its presentation in the Vallée de Joux in May 2022, the sculpture will have its international premiere in Dubai in February, in connection with the The Stellar Odyssey exhibition.

Made of Makers is a deep embodiment of the 190-year-old key values that have characterised Jaeger-LeCoultre: originality, expertise, and accuracy. It enriches the interaction that has long existed between horology, artisanship, and art. The project focuses on world-class innovators from beyond the world of watchmaking who share the Maison's principles and whose work explores new forms of expression via diverse and often surprising materials and media.

Catherine Rénier, CEO of Jaeger-LeCoultre, said,

"Through Made of Makers, we seek diverse viewpoints on how the practises of watchmaking, art, and other creative disciplines may add value to lived experiences. We seek out artists from varied disciplines, such as cuisine, music, and digital art, whose works broaden our ideas, challenge our senses, and evoke powerful emotions."

Guillaume Marmin redefines conventional notions of sculpture, space, and time by using light, music, and movement in intricate and intriguing ways. His art inspires the beauty of the undetectable and the physical laws, producing a new universe of visuals and narratives, taking the observer to another location, and prompting reflection and meditation. This nearly transcendental influence on the observer is its greatest allure.

The artist states,

"I attempt to use a conceptual and technical approach simultaneously. I am always searching for new instruments to play with, and the current era is especially favourable to this. When working with light, we encounter scientific, artistic, philosophical, and even metaphysical concerns. Since the 1950s, I believe my work is a continuation of the investigation initiated by artists such as Victor Vasarely and Francois Morellet. I also have a great urge to remove art from galleries, invest in public space, and establish new distribution networks."

While using technologically sophisticated techniques and digital media, Guillaume Marmin's work is always based on reality. Through topics such as Earth, architecture, physics paradigms, and, in this commission for Jaeger-LeCoultre, celestial events, he shows the dichotomy between nature and technology in contemporary society.

Catherine Rénier, chief executive officer of Jaeger-LeCoultre, said,

"We are happy to be collaborating with Guillaume.The manner in which his art arouses the imagination and inspires amazement and wonder wonderfully encapsulates how we feel when we gaze into the night sky and observe the motions of the stars and planets. In this regard, as well as the sophistication and underlying intricacy of his systems, an identical analogy can be drawn with watchmaking. Passengers: Through Time is an exceptional example of our Stellar Odyssey topic since it examines the fundamental nature of time."

"Passengers: Time Travel"

Guillaume Marmin, in collaboration with Jaeger-LeCoultre, has added a whole new chapter to his celebrated work Passengers. This second part, Passengers: Through Time, concentrates on celestial and astronomical observation and provides its visitors – or passengers – with an investigation of the relationships between time, space, and light as defined by the theory of relativity.

"The goal of this project was to make the connection between seeing the sky and measuring time visible," explains Guillaume Marmin. "From conversations with astronomers and watchmakers, I envisioned a work of art capable of encoding the connections between time and space."

The brilliant planning phase of Passengers: Through Time included extensive consultations between the artist and the Institute of Planetology and Astrophysics of Grenoble, which allowed him to identify and simulate the link between time and the universe in light of current kanowledge. Using generative programming to transcribe the acquired data, he has developed an immersive and inspirational world that allows us to briefly approach the mathematical basis of reality and the beauty of the unseen.

Through a kinetic device encased inside a walk-through capsule and comprised of visual and auditory motions, limitless reflections, and dizzying views, the project sends visitors (passengers) on a stellar journey in which they play the leading role. This intricate and evocative mix of light, music, and movement evokes the expanse of the universe in the thoughts of the passengers, prompting them to ponder the basic issue of what time is.